Mar., 1912 
NESTING OF THE CANADA GOOSE AT LAKE TAHOE 
71 
the spring, when the ice breaks up, such mammals as happen to be on it find 
themselves isolated ; and it is to such of these as find in the surrounding waters 
an impassable barrier that the animal life is limited. 
I found the g'oose colony to consist of but a single nest, placed on the bare 
rock at the foot of a giant jefifrey pine near the water’s edge. It was made entirely 
of pine needles, with the usual down-lining, and held an addled eg'g, while numer- 
ous empty shells lay .strewn about. The parents were noticed about half a mile 
down the bay. 
Two days later at Rowland’s Marsh, I located another goose nest with the 
small complement of two eggs, one infertile and one from which the chick was 
just emerging. The nest was placed against a fallen log, and besides the lining 
of down was composed entirely of chips of pine bark, a quantity of which lay 
Eig. 25. NEST OF CANADA GOOSE: ROWLAND’S MARSH, LAKE TAHOE 
near. From the variety of material used in the composition of the nests found, 
it seems evident that the birds have little or no preference for any particular 
substance, but use that most easily available. 
On the day after the arrival of iNIessrs. Carriger and Littlejohn (June 5), a 
tramp was taken along the Little Truckee River. This, ordinarily, is a stream of 
moderate size, but now, with the rush of water from fast melting snow, had 
become in places as wide as half a mile. Some distance up this stream we flushed 
a pair of geese, which from their actions I judged to have a nest somewhere in 
the immediate vicinity. After a careful .search we came to the conclusion that it 
must lie somewhere on a group of small inaccessible islands now partially sub- 
merged by the rapidly rising waters. Littlejohn followed the pair farther up 
stream, and, losing them for a time, was surprised to see one suddenly take wing 
